Our People
Parent Zone has a whole team of astonishingly talented people, each bringing their own skills and enthusiasms to helping families flourish in a digital age.
Vicki Shotbolt, CEO and founder
Vicki Shotbolt is the founder and CEO of Parent Zone, which she started in 2005 when mobile phones were things you used to make phone calls with. She often speaks publicly about parenting and digital issues and is on the executive board of the UK Council for Child Internet Safety. Vicki likes sailing and is proud rescuer and owner of Teddy the dog.
Sophie Linington, deputy CEO
Sophie joined Parent Zone in 2006 and manages the statutory projects, including membership, training and Parent Info. Previously, Sophie spent eight years at the Family and Parenting Institute, and has experience in supporting parents of children with learning disabilities. A stickler for correct spelling and grammar, Sophie ironically owns a T-shirt with a badly written and grammatically incorrect slogan. Sadly, she’s only worn it to work once so far but we live in hope of seeing it again at some time.
Joe Shotbolt, chief financial officer
Joe heads up finance and operations at Parent Zone. He served in the Royal Marines for 16 years before going on to be a physiotherapist for the NHS and two football clubs. He joined Team PZ in 2012 and has been keeping the business ship-shape ever since! When he’s not at work, he puts us all to shame with his dedication to keeping fit – triathlons, pentathlons, skiing and sailing – or daydreams about being an astronaut.
Yasmin Brooks, head of services
Yasmin manages all Parent Zone products and services. She has a keen interest in the impact of digital technology on families and is continually re-assessing and improving resources to best support families in this tricky area. Studying languages at university gave her a taste for travel. Her favourite place in the world is Venice. Unfortunately our office is in a decidedly less romantic location - Angel, North London.
Megan Rose, head of partnerships
Megan works in our corporate team where her background in teaching comes in handy for ensuring all our projects run smoothly. Her latest interest is learning how policy can evolve in order to support children in their online world. When she isn’t working, you can find her at the gym, booking tickets to a West-End show or hunting for (yet another) pair of shoes…
Marjun Ziarati, senior writer
Marjun is a writer and former modern languages teacher. She is responsible for producing content for Parent Zone platforms and corporate projects, as well as commissioning and editing articles. As a keen linguist, Marjun helps out with translation on our international projects. Having worked in Spain and Brazil, she is now obsessed with travel and all things Rio de Janeiro.
Torjus Roberg, junior writer
Torjus joined the Parent Zone team in July 2018 and works as a writer producing content for PZ services as well as corporate projects and keeps the organisation’s social media profiles alive. He studied Journalism with Media and Communication at Kingston University before joining Parent Zone. Outside of work, he is a bona fide cinephile and fan of most things pop-culture as well as being an avid music lover. He also has a secret desire to learn how to play banjo.
Zain Mahmood, designer
Zain is on the operations team and works on design and tech across the company. Previously he worked as a digital designer at a non-profit called Lifetime Learning which specialised in educational training for schools. He studied mechanical engineering at university, and so has a keen interest in STEM. During the summer months he likes to play at Dulwich Cricket Club, and is a loyal Arsenal supporter all year round.
Alex Seltsin, web developer
Alex is our go-to-guy for all things technical. Although this is his first job in the UK, he's already made huge improvements to our website and is currently developing new, exciting areas for our members. In his spare time he enjoys playing a variety of sports - particularly swimming, basketball and volleyball - and is a major lover of all things Peter Jackson.
Gilly Longton, team leader
Gilly works on Parent Zone’s in-house films and a range of projects including the Google Legends project bringing internet awareness to junior school assemblies across the country. Previously she was a BBC producer working mainly at CBBC on various programmes including Blue Peter and Comic Relief, where she worked on the Global Campaign for Education.
Simran Cheema, project officer
Simran joined Parent Zone in April 2018 and works in the corporate team. Having worked and studied abroad, she is always looking to book her next adventurous holiday which has previously seen her meet polar bears in Alaska.
Ollie Barron, family support worker
Ollie joined Parent Zone to talk with schools and parents about online safety, where he takes his background in family support and combines it with his love of tech. Outside of work, he can be found on delayed trains, making obscure music, and making a mess in the kitchen.
Cliff Manning, head of digital
Cliff has over twenty years' experience developing digital services that enable people to access help, connect with others and learn. He previously led on digital engagement for the Children's Commissioner for England. Cliff is an Associate for Carnegie UK Trust's youth digital inclusion programme #NotWithoutMe and he established 'More Than Robots’ - a platform for practitioners working with young people online. He is also a trustee for Sound Connections – a charity that empowers young people through music-making opportunities. He still struggles to wire a plug...
Tim Malster, trainer
Tim Joined the team in April 2018, having taught Music Technology for 17 years. Tim works in schools delivering the Be Internet Legends assemblies as well as a number of other projects. When not working he enjoys spending time in his recording studio, and hopes to get around to writing some new material soon..!
Jenny Skeats, trainer
Jenny has recently joined Parent Zone having worked as an actress and teacher since University. Being self employed during these years allowed her to access a diverse and exciting range of experiences and has helped develop her teaching skills and knowledge. Now coming back to full time employment she is able to apply what she has learnt to the training team's projects. In the future she wishes to expand on her skills and finally learn how to sign!
